Sinn Féin's Mary Lou McDonald has said Monday's two-hour Dáil sitting to debate the first part of the Budget is completely inadequate.
Minister for Public Expenditure & Reform Brendan Howlin will outline the spending cuts the Government will make when he speaks to the Dáil at 2.30pm on Monday afternoon.
Ms McDonald said the move was an effort by the Government to shut down debate.
Joe Higgins of the Socialist Party said Mr Howlin will be cast in his favourite role as the grim reaper when he comes to lay out a programme of "savage cuts".
Mr Higgins said the time to debate was utterly inadequate and far more time was needed to spell out the implications.
He said: "We know that Labour backbenchers are in an acute sense of mental angst over these cuts."
Tánaiste Eamon Gilmore said what the Government is doing next week is new.
Mr Gilmore said: "We are going to have the estimates announced in the House. There will be an opportunity for each of the opposition parties to respond."
He reminded Fianna Fáil's Éamon Ó Cuív that the Budget statement was announced in the Dáíl by the previous Government and ministers went out and held various press conferences.
